Eric Budds Reimagining the Post-Conflict State draws from the analysis of several cases (Northern Ireland, the Philippines, Bosnia, Rwanda, and Sri Lanka) of post-conflict states and societies in order to help us think about the kinds of changes in power, voice, and memory that are needed for reconciliation to usher in sustainable peace. While a great deal of scholarship exists to explain the causes of conflicts, there is less work that provides accessible frameworks in the way that Budd does, for understanding and explaining the conditions that enable sustainable peace in states that have undergone often brutal forms of intra-state conflict. -- Brian Mello, Professor of Political Science, Muhlenberg College, US Reimagining the Post-Conflict State is a well-written introduction to the challenges of building a shared sense of community after intense violent conflict. Eric Budd shows that the amount of freedom, constitutional proscriptions and protection of some identities, and the massification of national narratives via educational curricula must be taken seriously in order to have an authentic reconciliation. This analysis, particularly through the diverse cases explored, sets this book apart as foundational for someone trying to understand the fraught and critical time that follows the photos of signed treaties, receipt of prizes for negotiators, and return of arms to the armories. -- Tony Spanakos, Professor of Political Science and Law, Montclair State University, US
